As a Twins fan this pains me because I’m sick of seeing players leave Minnesota and thrive elsewhere, but as a human I’m thrilled to see Justin Morneau doing really well for the Rockies.

Morneau’s career was derailed by a concussion in mid-2010. At the time he was hitting .345 with an OPS over 1.000, gunning for his second MVP award. And then he spent the next three seasons struggling to stay in the lineup amid dizziness and headaches and various other horrible symptoms that led to him hitting just .256 with a .726 OPS from 2011-2013.

He looked nothing like his old self at any point and following a trade to the Pirates late last season Morneau slugged just .312 with zero homers in 25 games. It was sad to watch. And now Morneau is hitting .327 with nine homers and a .940 OPS through 42 games for the Rockies, including .300 with a .538 slugging percentage away from Coors Field.

Part of me is like “dang, why couldn’t that have happened for him in Minnesota” but most of me is like “at least it’s happening somewhere.” At age 33 his career is back on track and everyone (except maybe National League West pitchers) should be very happy about that.

He still looks pretty slick with the leather as well. The ridonkulous defensive numbers put up by Tulo and Arenado are at least in part due to Morneau picking some less-than-perfect throws and making the outs. Good on him.

What kind of thing is that to say?! Cheap, small, and vicious. Morneau has had more than his share of injuries and, even if that weren’t true, a real fan wants their team to beat their opponents when both teams are at their best. That’s the optimal test of a team’s ability and heart: can you beat the best? It is great for all of us who love baseball that Morneau is back in form. Let him play at the top of his game and then rejoice if your Pirates can overcome that.